Gnassingbe Eyadema

12:03AM GMT 08 Feb 2005

Gnassingbe Eyadema, the President of Togo, who has died aged 69, was not only Africa's longest serving leader, sustaining himself in power through tyranny; he also had the dubious distinction of pioneering that continent's first military coup d'etat, a trend that caught on swiftly and blighted the first 25 years of the post-colonial era.

Eyadema was a 31-year-old army sergeant when he first seized power in January 1967 although, as self-appointed leader of a group of rebellious former French Foreign Legionnaires, he was widely held to have played a personal role in the assassination of Togo's first president, Sylvanus Olympio, four years earlier. Eyadema claimed initially that he had not sought leadership for himself but to "restore democracy" to his country. He was soon, however, reinforcing his despotic rule with the ruthlessness he had acquired as a burly French soldier who had fought in Indo-China and Algeria.

He was also quick to learn that dictatorship required the development of a personality cult, surrounding himself with fellow tribesmen from the heavily-populated northern region of Togo. His status acquired an almost religious intensity after he survived at least three assassination attempts and an air crash.

Despite the tyranny, Eyadema enjoyed the unquestioning patronage of France, repeatedly being welcomed by President Chirac as "a close personal friend of mine and of France". The dictator, by now deeming himself to be "Le Guide", was shrewd enough to ensure that he and the country he dominated remained loyal to the concept of the French "sphere of influence", while France was cynical enough to ignore – even defend – any excesses of his regime.

Paris, as always keen to reward any potential leader who might help extend its West African ambitions, ensured that Togo appeared as a stable nation which could assist its foreign policy with a UN General Assembly vote. As a result, Ecowas (the Economic Community of West African States) was founded in partnership with Nigeria; Lome, the Togolese capital, hosted aid and trade conventions of the EU, which led to the Lome convention governing Africa's relations with Europe.

Togo, a small wedge of a country between Ghana and Benin, has relatively few resources, relying heavily on the mining of phosphates backed by small cocoa, coffee and cotton crops. Even so, Eyadema, through his French military connections, could be relied upon to keep the flag of "black France" flying. As a result, his regime could count on some £60 million of "aid" from Paris each year, very little of which found its way to the increasingly impoverished Togolese people.

Gnassingbe Eyadema was born at Pya in the semi-arid north of Togo, on December 26 1935, the son of poor peasant parents of the Kabye tribe, one of the largest of the country's 37. He was given the Christian name Etienne, only changing it to Eyadema, meaning "courage" in the local dialect, when he began his ascent to power.

He received only the most rudimentary education but developed into a strong and energetic youth, excelling in physical sports, particularly a local form of wrestling. The French garrison in Dahomey (now Benin) was recruiting strong young men; Eyadema and a group of friends made their way across the nearby border to volunteer.

His physical prowess and enthusiasm as a French soldier in combat earned him promotion and instilled in him a loyalty to France. He was based back in Dahomey when Togo, a former UN Trust Territory, was granted full independence in 1960. Sylvanus Olympio, scion of one of the best-known families of the southern Ewe people favoured by the colonial power for their aptitude, became the first president.

Honourably discharged after his service with the French, Eyadema returned to Togo, hoping to join his own country's army. Olympio was suspicious of any military ambitions and flatly refused Eyadema's request to sponsor a training course in France. Arrogantly sidelining the poor people of the north, Olympio had also made the mistake of making it clear he wished to distance the new country from its colonial past, which led many West African observers to believe that Paris had a hand in his assassination.

Eyadema boasted to friends that he was the man who fired the shots which killed Olympio in the early hours of January 13 1963. He later denied any complicity and threatened journalists who reported it. But he became an influential military figure under the new president, Nicolas Grunitzky, helping to form Togo's army and rapidly becoming a colonel and chief-of-staff.

Grunitzky's regime was soon facing a severe political and economic crisis. Eyadema, with seeming reluctance, agreed to "help the people with their desire for true democracy", and seized power in January 1967.

His early public speeches and the day-to-day administration of the country's affairs were all dictated by Jaques Foccart, de Gaulle's Machiavellian adviser on African affairs. French "advisers" ran the government departments and created a Togo that was, according to critics, a "reborn French colony in all but name". Eyadema was left unhindered to do what he did best – increase the armed forces and police loyal to him and eliminate any opposition. Political opponents were exiled or "disappeared". A former vice-president and a popular army colonel died in mysterious circumstances.

When international demands forced many African states to observe democratic standards and dictators began to fall, Eyadema called a presidential election in 1998. Many died as he attempted to rig the poll, and when the voting began to go against him he put an abrupt end to the process "in the interests of national security". Amnesty International reported a persistent pattern of killings, disappearances, torture and arbitrary arrests.

Jacques Chirac visited Togo in 1999, criticising Amnesty's report as "manipulation" but quietly urging Eyadema towards democracy – under threat of a withdrawal of French aid money. Eyadema duly announced that he would "sacrifice himself once more" by seeking re-election in new elections in 2003. He won this poll, having banned his main opponent, Gilchrist Olympio, son of the man he had murdered in his first quest for power.

He had suffered from a heart condition for several years and reportedly died from a heart attack on February 5 as he was about to board an aircraft for treatment in Paris. Under Togo's constitution, power should have passed to the speaker of the national assembly, but the country's constitution was altered overnight to allow the dictator's son, Faure, to be named as his successor.

Gnassingbe Eyadema is survived by three wives and an estimated 12 children.